Dee Dodd inducted into the NCPMA Hall of Fame
I thought a lot about this blog entry; there are so many layers to the story of Dee Dodd being inducted into the NCPMA Hall of Fame, so many directions in which I could go with it, that I found myself like a dog chasing its own tail- moving fast but going nowhere. After a few starts and stops, I decided that the best thing to do at the moment is to quote the speech given by his daughter, Kristin Dodd-Tarleton, honoring him at the ceremony. It was a moving event and a tear came to the eye of both father and daughter. There is a mutual respect shared by these two and it showed. The sense of family within Carolina Pest’s culture and the commitment to the pest control community is made very evident in Kristin’s speech. But, well….that’s another story and I don’t want to go off on a tangent. I’ll just leave it at this and congratulate E. David Dodd, III on his well deserved induction into the Hall of Fame.
Transcript of speech by Kristin Dodd-Tarleton:
“I am very honored to be able to present the Hall of Fame award to my father, Dee Dodd.
His dedication to the NC Pest Management Association over the years has been unwavering. Like myself, he has been fortunate to grow up in an industry that has allowed him to give back to an organization that that supports us all. Like his father before him, he feels that we should give our time and knowledge to the pest management industry since this industry has supported us for so long. Growing up and seeing my father give his time over the years to NCPMA has instilled in me the desire to carry on this tradition and be active in our association. Without that kind of role model, it’s often easy to get too busy or caught up in the day to day operations of our companies. He has always encouraged me to make the time to be involved with NCPMA, just as he has done, and I am very thankful for that.
Dee started out in the industry like many of you, working in his family business from a very young age. He grew up working on the termite truck at an age that would now get all of us in trouble with the Department of Labor. Working with his father, he started going to the PCT School and being involved in the industry when he was in his teens. According to his math, he has been to the PCT School every year for 55 years except for one. Unfortunately, the one year he didn’t make it several years ago, a rumor started going around that he was dead, so my sister and I had a lot of questions to answer that year.
Throughout the years, Dee has been involved in many projects and positions with the association. Serving on the BOD (1968-69, 1990-99), the Rules and Reg committee (1991-2014), Education Foundation (2004-2013), as well as serving as President of the association in 1997.
His passion for giving back to the industry is evident in his work to help establish the Education Foundation and the Past Presidents Scholarship. He felt that is was important to use the money the association had to encourage the next generation of pest management professionals. By establishing this scholarship opportunity for children whose parents are active in the industry, the Education Foundation has been able to give out thousands of dollars to help with educational expenses. I think of all his accomplishments, he is the most proud of this achievement. It is something that has benefited so many already, but will continue to help others for many years to come.
Serving as chair of the Rules and Regulations committee has also been a passion of Dee’s for many years. Over the years, Dee has been the go-to guy for any question related to Rules and Regs and the wealth of knowledge he has acquired is impressive. He is always willing help out or step in to assist in any way he can on Rules and Regs issues and I know he has enjoyed working with the SPCD over the years on behalf of the association to work out solutions to issues in a fair and logical manner.
All this involvement with the association is great, but I feel confident if I asked him what the association is really about and how it benefits its members, he would say it is the sharing between its members and how willing they all are to help each other out. I have seen him on so many occasions sitting with other members who are our direct competitors and tell them how we do things or offer to help them out with problems they may be having. I think that is the greatest compliment I can give my dad- his willingness to help anyone out and not ask for anything in return, but to do it out of the goodness of his heart and for the betterment of the industry as a whole. I am sure many of the people in this room have spoken with Dee over the years and I feel sure if you ever asked him his opinion on how he did something, he would share it freely (sometimes more freely if he’s had a couple scotches). If you haven’t met Dee, you can usually find him standing out front of the hotel with a cigarette in his hand, which I think is where the majority of his discussions take place.
Dee’s easy going personality and his ability to diffuse tense situations have been a real asset to have during his years of involvement on the board of directors and as president of the association. I have heard many stories, and seen firsthand, some pretty intense discussions in board meetings over the years- especially with some of his closest friends, like Harden Blackwell and Steve Taylor. But through all the heated conversations, he has made lifelong friends who are there to support each over and their companies. I feel this passion towards issues just shows how deeply our members care about the industry and the well being of NCPMA. On a side note, Dee is also known to have some pretty heated discussions about politics since he is not afraid to say he is the only Democrat in the room at most industry functions (but that’s a whole different topic)!
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to share some of the many contributions my father has made to NCPMA. I am so happy to be able to present this award to my dad, as I know he is deserving of the recognition that comes with being inducted into the Hall of Fame. Congratulations!”